Resurrection II: The Seeds of Rebellion
by TheGamingOstrich
Summary: The year is 2027. Five years have passed since the Battle of Central City and the fall of the Flash. Riser has taken over the world, and it's up to Barry and Samandriel to take it back. Before this, they were mere warriors. Will they have it in them to lead a rebellion? Find out in Resurrection II: The Seeds of Rebellion. *Read 'Resurrection' first*
1. A Red Letter Day

**A/N: Here we are. The second book. I can't believe that we've come this far.**

 **Sorry for the extremely long wait. I needed time to plan as well as a break from writing, and a bit of a warm-up in the form of Hunter & Vampire.**

 **I probably won't have a consistent update schedule for a bit as school is starting literally two days from when I am writing this author's note. When I do, I'll say.**

 **By the way, this story will come in greater importance to Hunter & Vampire, so don't expect that to keep me from writing this that much.**

 **I actually have a beta-reader now! His name is GlisteningAorticArches.**

 **Either way, I think I've kept you waiting for far too long.**

 **I hope you all enjoy...**

 **The Seeds of Rebellion.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own DC, CW, or any of their shows or characters. I do, however, own the plot of the Resurrection Series.**

* * *

Light.

A streak of light moved atop the iced-over ground. The ice clinging to the blades of grass quickly melted from the heat.

The light moved around the ground, hoping to find a hiding place. After pondering a good location, the light moved to it's desired hiding spot.

Not too long after, a voice called out from the surrounding trees.

"You know hiding won't help you! Come on out already."

A man, cloaked in flames of various colors and winged like an angel, stepped out into the opening in the abandoned town. Any ice that the light didn't melt was quickly obliterated by the man's flames.

He appeared to be holding two intricate swords, both made of what appeared to be the same fire covering himself. He dispelled them and moved his right hand out as if to grip the air. A symbol glowed on his hand, shining a bright blue. Not a moment later was a beautiful blue sword held in his grip, flames dancing off the back.

"Come on out, Barry. Let's continue our-"

A white flame appeared in the center of his chest. As it did, a voice entered his head that only he could hear.

 _"He's up there! On the Ferris Wheel!"_

Sam spun around and looked up at the infamous Chernobyl Ferris wheel. As soon as he did, a large lightning bolt moved toward him originating from the top cart. With the little time he had to react, he clumsily created a shield and blocked the attack. Despite the sudden defense, Sam was thrown back 10 meters, his sword vanished as he hit the ground. Where the lightning bolt hit appeared Barry, clad in leathery rags, far from the high-quality leather he was used to years ago. It seemed as though he was the bolt.

"Impressive," Barry remarked. "Even with the little time you had to react, your shield absorbed most of the attack. Let me guess, Penny gave away my location?"

 **"Guilty as charged!** **"** Penny's voice came from the white flame on Sam's chest as he rose from the ground. **"Although, he should have seen you. But, that's Sammy for ya, always needing my help."** Even without a physical body, Barry could still hear the smirk she was wearing.

"She's not wrong. We've been hiding here for, what, 5 years now? You should know how I think by now." Barry scolded sarcastically.

"Hey, without me learning how to cook with heavily irradiated animals, we would have starved by now!"

"And I am eternally grateful!" Barry said, walking toward sam. "But knowing how to cook with two-headed cows won't help us in our fight against Riser."

"Who knows, maybe I'll convince him into a diplomatic surrender through my delicious cooked hydra beef!" Sam exclaimed.

The best friends both laughed. Laughter helped them through a lot, especially when isolated in the only place the Riser wouldn't risk to send his troops to. Whats the point anyway? It's not like anyone would be crazy enough to hide out next to the elephant's foot.

"I'm gonna go prepare dinner," Sam said. "What are you gonna do for the rest of the evening?"

"I think I'll try to contact the Speed Force, see if it has anything to say about the outside world."

"I doubt they'll respond. They haven't in months. But whatever, I trust your judgment. See ya." With that, Sam flew back to their hideout.

Barry was desperate to speak with the Speed Force. Like Sam said, he hadn't in months, and he needed to find out what was going on with his old team. He still felt a little guilty, not just for making them think he's dead, but for leaving them with Riser 5 years ago.

 _Well, would you look at that?_

 _I won._

Barry's face darkened. He needed to find out how his friends were doing.

* * *

 _Riser rose from Barry's corpse. As much as he wanted to dance for victory, he had to keep up the ruse with Caitlin and Cisco. Just for a little while longer._

 _He turned to the pair, both crying over Barry. He gave them a moment before speaking._

 _"I hope both of you know, I didn't want it to end this way." Riser spoke softly. It took another moment for someone to respond._

 _"Yeah," Cisco said. "I got it." For some reason, he sounded cold. Riser thought it was simply over the loss of his friend, but quickly realized it was directed solely toward himself when Cisco spoke to Caitlin._

 _"Wanna go see him?" This time his voice was soft and caring. In stark contrast to his tone with Riser._

"Did he hear what I said?" _Riser thought to himself._

 _"Yeah." Caitlin managed to get out. They both walked over to Barry and knelt down beside his corpse. They began whispering to each other is a tone too quiet for Riser to hear._

 _"Listen," Cisco whispered, "I don't know how, probably has to do with my vibe powers, but I heard what Riser said to Barry when he was beside him. "_

 _"What... what did he say?" Caitlin whispered back._

 _"He said something about him finally winning. As if Barry's death made him win." Caitlin felt a sledgehammer hit her in the chest. She should have listened. She should have trusted Barry and Sam. She should have rejected Riser and fought against him._

 _Quickly the sadness in her heart and the tears on her face turned red hot. Cisco knew what she wanted to do._

 _"Wait!" Cisco whispered, grabbing Caitlin's wrist that was about to attack Riser. "Are you sure you want to do that? Wouldn't killing him undermine everything we were trying to accomplish here?"_

 _"I don't wanna kill him, I just wanna see him suffer!" With that, Caitlin broke free of Cisco's hold and jumped up._

 _"Do you want-" Riser began to speak but was stopped when a crude spear of ice impaled his stomach. He grunted in pain, doubling over. The forces surrounding them began to close in.  
_

 _"No, don't approach us!" Riser shouted to the army. He looked up and saw Caitlin's face. It was full of anger, full of rage. Her eyes were a brighter blue than they have ever been before. Not a second after, Caitlin's knee made contact with Riser's face._

 **"You Bastard!"** _A fist shrouded in ice connected with Riser's jaw._ **"You dishonest sack of shit! How could you do this?!"** _She readied another blow, but Cisco held her back, wrapping his arms around her._

 _"No, stop Caitlin! No more! Don't let her take over!" Cisco shouted. Caitlin struggled before the anger wore off and was replaced with a repulsion unheard of. Riser spat blood and chuckled._

 _"Strong as ever, Caitlin Snow. I see your corruption is trying to break free."_

 _"Shut up, you freak." Cisco released his grip on Caitlin and stepped up to Riser. Cisco knew Riser wouldn't die from what he was about to do. He placed his hand on Riser's chest and summoned all his energy into a blast._

 _Riser was flung back by the force of the blast. Cisco opened a breach while Riser was still in the air. Riser entered it and came out the other one, just a few meters above Cisco. He projected another blast, sending Riser to the overhang of S.T.A.R. Labs. He slammed into it, falling back to the ground, colliding with a loud thud and a few cracks. Cisco walked over and placed his foot on Riser's head._

 _"So... are you gonna... kill me?" Riser struggled out._

 _"No. I just needed you to hurt."_

 _"That... that's too bad." Riser smirked. Cisco raised an eyebrow, about to ask what he meant. Before he could, an arrow went straight through Riser's head. Cisco jerked his head over to where the arrow came from to find a man dressed in a suit standing beside the rest of Barry's team holding Oliver's bow._

 _"Thanks!" The man said to Oliver, setting the bow down in front of him. The man walked over to Cisco and Caitlin._

 _"Come on, you really thought I would actually show my face, let alone allow you to even make an attempt to attack?" Riser snapped his fingers and nodded in the direction of the other "Riser" that had an arrow in his head. Before their eyes, his face changed into that of a stranger's._

 _"Damn you!" Caitlin yelled, blasting a stream of ice at Riser. The stream moved magically moved around Riser as if it was hitting a sphere around Riser instead of the man himself._

 _"I'd advise you to not try that again. It'll make your imprisonment an easier process." With that, Riser snapped his fingers. The surrounding army converged on Cisco and Caitlin. They struggled but were powerless against an army of superpowered "zombies"._

 _"Take them all to holding cells in the Interloper." With the order, the army did what it was told and took the rest of the team along with Cisco and Caitlin to their cells._

* * *

Barry left the field and went to find a secluded place, preferably one closed in to hide the energy from the Speed Force's appearance, and strong enough to withstand the force of the appearance. After some searching, he found a small house that looked like it would work. Even so, the years of isolation left the house decrepit.

Normally, if Barry wanted to speak with the Speed Force, all he had to do was enter into it. However, because of the energy needed to do so, he would create a big enough anomaly to warrant investigation by Riser's henchmen.

Barry did what he had done many times before. He began to vibrate. First slowly, then faster as he gathered the strength. Barry raised his hand out in front of himself and began channeling the energy into the air around him. The whole room began to teem with electricity.

Lucky for Barry, what he needed to happen did. In front of him, a tear appeared. It grew larger and it's pull grew stronger. It grew and grew until it collapsed in on its own power.

A small burst of energy later and Barry was no longer alone in the room. With him stood Nora Allen, the Speed Force. Barry let out a gasp and a chuckle. Finally.

"Hello, Barry," Nora said. She was smiling, and an apologetic look swam in her eyes.

"Hey, Mom. What took you so long?"

"Lots. Much has happened in the past months. But first..." Nora opened her arms for a hug. Barry smiled and gladly accepted it. It wasn't fully his mother, but it was as close as he would get.

"It's good to see you," Barry said.

"Likewise," Nora responded. She pulled away and looked long at her son. "My have you grown. Even though I've seen you many times since your fall, you still surprise me."

"Yeah. I've changed." Barry responded. He had. Living in near-isolation has changed him, along with the 5-year timeframe. Granted, he has aged less than a normal human would because of his connection to the Speed Force, but the harsh conditions have made him look much older than he should. A rough dark beard has grown and several lines from fatigue have formed on his face. His eyes no longer have the shine that they once held. Deep down though, he knew that shine would return once he freed this world and his friends.

"Not just physically too. Your mind is drastically different. No longer are you the naive little boy who thought he could be a superhero, nor the cold-blooded assassin with no remorse for killing. You're both. The kindness of Barry Allen and the strength of the Wraith. The empathy of the Flash and the wisdom of the Speed Force's strongest warrior." Nora smiled. "I am so proud of what you've become. If anyone can save this world, it's you."

"Keep talking like that and my head will pop from my ego." Barry chuckled.

"Anyways, let's get to all that's happened."

"Yeah." Barry pulled up a worn and rusted chair covered in dust and sat down. Nora did the same.

"So, as you know, Riser has been wildly successful in his conquering of the world. From what we've gathered, he either wants to enslave no further than this world, or he wants to make sure that the homefront is secured and will not rebel the moment he leaves to expand his empire across this universe. It's pretty easy to know which one is the case."

"Well, he finished taking land in 2026 and spent a year or so putting down the initial rebellions. I would assume that there are still many underground networks of resistance fighters." Barry suggested.

"Correct. Problem is, none of them are unified. The resistance communities are swarmed with in-fighting. They need one unifying force to get any work done."

"Ideally, that would be me, right?" Barry said not realizing his showing ego.

Nora chuckled. "Soon, yes."

"Soon?" Barry asked. "Why, is a catalyst about to occur?"

"For you, yes. This is where the reason for me being unavailable comes into play.

Your team has lost their usefulness to Riser. Sure, he still uses them as examples of what happens to defectors and rebels, but the risk of them leading a rebellion is too great for Riser. So, he's decided to set them up for execution. All of them."

"WHAT?! Why the hell didn't you tell me this when it happened?" Barry's usually calm demeanor was washed away by panic, sending him to his feet.

"Because it would have happened in a way that no one could have prevented. So, I used some of my voices on the inside to change the execution, while also drawing Riser's attention away with a small rebellion that would happen a few days before the execution, just to make sure he wouldn't be there. Don't worry, by the time you are ready, they will still be alive."

Barry sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose and sitting back down. "When is the execution date?"

"10 days. That should give you and Sam enough time to plan."

"Yeah." Barry stopped for a moment and let it all sink in. "This is really it, isn't it? After all this time, I'm finally going to take out Riser and win back the land."

"Yes. Question is, are you ready?" Barry looked up at Nora as she said this. Was he? All this time the prospect of taking back his home always felt like a dream, a far-off notion of hope. But now that it was actually here?

"Yes. I'm ready."

* * *

Barry and Nora left the worn down building and made their way to the makeshift home Barry and Sam had been living in for the past 5 years. As they walked, they spoke a little more.

"Is the prophesy still strong?"

"Yes. I've made sure of that. Even in the hearts of those not in a resistance, it echoes loudly."

"And my team?"

"Them as well. 'Riser shall fall at the last clap of thunder.'"

"We're lucky Riser took Mark Mardon. Since he controls the weather, Riser doesn't have to worry about there being a riot every time the rain falls. Granted, that has meant that when I'm training I can only run below the speed of sound or run so fast that I literally phase through the air. If I do otherwise then bad things could happen."

"Yeah. Luckily, that means that by saving your team you can simultaneously help jumpstart your rebellion."

"Good."

They soon arrived at the home that Barry and Sam had made for themselves. It was built from an old school building that had worn down to only a few rooms. They had then made new rooms with the surrounding woods. Sam was in the makeshift kitchen, cooking some recently killed and skinned deer. Next to him was a bright blue figure with the outline of a human body. This was Penny. The figure looked much like a human was painted over with a bright blue paint as opposed to a floating fire, meaning that you could still see things like subtle facial features.

"Hey, guys," Barry called out. "Look at who I found."

Penny and Sam both turned to look at Barry and saw Nora standing beside him. Sam's face lit up as his eyes rested upon the Speed Force.

"You answered!" Sam exclaimed, walking over to Nora and hugging her.

"Yeah," Nora said after Sam pulled away. "Sorry for the wait. A lot has happened."

Nora filled the Fire Angels in on what she told Barry, minus the ego boosters.

"So we get to leave this dump soon?!" Sam exclaimed.

"If you want to save your friends, yes."

"Where is the execution taking place? Penny asked.

"It's going to take place at the capital. This is a big event, and you can be sure that they'll broadcast the execution to every living room in the world."

"Which is why this is such a perfect time to strike." Barry finished.

"Alright, but where is the capital?" Penny asked. Nora sighed. Sheepishly, she responded.

"...Berlin."

Barry's smile broke to a 'You've got to be kidding me' face. Sam noticed the strange expressions.

"Why are you making that face? What's wrong with Berlin?"

"Uh, back in the 30s and 40s, Berlin was the capital of the leading country trying to take over the world. I just didn't think Riser would choose such a historically ironic location for his world-controlling regime."

"Well, at least it's near to us, respectively," Sam reassured.

"Yeah. By the way, where are they being held right now?" Barry asked

"Supposedly, they've been held in Riser's Starship ever since the Battle of Central City."

"Well, there goes that idea." Barry sighed.

"We should probably leave in the morning," Sam said. "We can't use our abilities to get there without risking getting spotted since that would ruin 5 years of prep."

"We should spend the rest of the evening packing up shop. We have 5 years of stuff to sift through." Barry suggested.

"Alright. I'll leave you to that. I'll come back to speak with you when you are ready to go." Nora said.

"See ya soon," Barry said. Nora nodded as she vanished, flickering away into the air.

* * *

The two spent the night sifting through their few belongings and picking out only the necessary items. They left with one backpack each, packed with water, food, and basic survival tools, including Barry's Catalyst as a hunting knife.

When they left for their journey, it was just an hour or so before dawn.

Just as they were reaching the edge of their sanctuary from Riser, Nora appeared in front of the duo.

"I see you're ready for the journey. After all this time, Riser finally has a challenger."

"Maybe, but I'm not sure if I'm ready for the war," Barry said.

"Don't worry about that. You'll do fine. I do have one more thing for you two."

"What is it?" Sam asked. Behind Nora, two masked Speed Force warriors appeared with their arms outstretched. In their arms rested familiar suits. One a deep crimson red and one a black and blue color with flaming decals.

"Are these-"

"Yes. We made you both new suits, keeping after their necessary feel." Nora explained. Barry, almost in a haze, walked up and looked at his suit. It was a bit more _red,_ than he remembered - almost crimson - causing the symbol on its chest to pop.

"Also, here." Nora opened her hands to reveal two rings. Both were golden, but with different symbols. One had the classic Flash symbol, while the other had a new one. A completely black background, with a bright blue minimalistic phoenix in the foreground. "They will contain your suits when not using them." The duo grabbed their respective rings and put them on, examining them.

"It works by swapping out your current outfit for the one stored in the ring. You activate it by channeling your respective energy into the ring."

Barry focused and pushed a little of his speed into the ring, while Sam pushed some flame into his. The two rings popped open and began to emanate energy. From Barry's ring came bolts of electricity. They reached out and struck the Flash suit, causing it to seemingly vanish into the ring, closing it. Out of Sam's came bright blue tendrils of his flame. The tendrils wrapped around his suit and pulled it into his ring.

"Now to wear the suit simply do the same. To take off the suit... well, you know the drill."

"Thank you." The two said simultaneously.

"Don't mention it. Now, go save the world."

With that, Barry and Sam walked past the speed force. They walked side by side on their journey to freedom.

In their hearts, they sang for the fall of Riser. In their hearts...

They sang for the rise of freedom.


	2. Just Passin Through

**A/N: I bet you at least one of you thought I forgot about this story.**

 **Listen. I never intended it to take this long. Junior year of high school just started so I'm loaded down with work. That and I'm also trying to learn how to use a game engine, so I'm a bit busy. I also had 2 hurricanes thrown at my state, so that's another thing.**

 **Also, when writing this chapter, I realized that I needed to do something I had never done before.**

 **Worldbuilding.**

 **It's up to you to decide if I'm good at it. Either way though, that didn't help with the time span.**

 **I hope that it won't take this long again. If you are dissuaded from following this because of the update times, I'm sorry. I have gotten used to the workload of the new year and will make it my mission to write more often. Try to hold on a little longer, alright?**

 **I wished I could come back with something bigger, but I figure that something now is better than a lot later. Anyways, onto the review responses!**

 **xOpal69 - I hope the chapter lived up to the hype!**

 **Brian Hughes - Thanks! I hope this was worth the wait too tho...**

 **Oliman99 - I think you got the name mixed up buddy. Either way, thank you for the support! As for the writing style compliment, the dialogue probably has to do with the fact that I can't stand unnatural dialogue. People use contractions, people use slang, people use all sorts of things that many don't put in. Thank you!**

 **alaskanbirdfriend - My friend. You have returned. I swear you make me hyped for the next chapter just because your reviews are amazing. Btw, take a shot at the story idea! That would be an interesting story to read.**

 **Alright. I've decided that I need to get this out asap, so I'm not gonna take the time to get this beta read. The quality of this might show it, but regardless, I hope you forgive me. GlisteningAorticArches, you better be ready for the next one!**

 **I've held you off long enough. It's time for the chapter.**

 **Enjoy!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own CW, DC, or any of its shows or characters. I only own this story.**

* * *

The flame and the flash walked along a barren path. It was a long walk to Berlin and they had to get there in just over a week. The quickest route there still took more time than they had. Luckily, they could use some of their powers in the more rural areas of Europe where Riser wouldn't be constantly monitoring.

The first major city they had to pass through was Lublin, Poland. Or, what used to be that, at least. Chances are, Riser kept the large cities and just rebuilt them to his liking.

On the plus side, this meant that they might have a quicker way to Berlin. Sadly, this also increased their chances of being found. Barry hoped that with their training they would be able to slip past pretty easily.

As of right now, they were fairly close to the border of Ukraine, in a town called Vyshniv. The place was run down, poverty seen everywhere. Wherever there wasn't poverty, Riser's men were stationed.

From what they were able to gather so far, Riser's grunts were just resurrected slaves. They were already dead, leaving a husk to be filled only with Riser's commands. They weren't even alive. Good news for the duo, since they didn't have to worry about making sure not to kill them. The only other enforcer was a position called Civil Enforcers. These seemed to be people from the populace that volunteered to be part of Riser's workforce and lead the resurrected grunts. It's hard to blame them, though. With the conditions they were living in, it would be easy to give in. Although, with how they treated the rest of the populace, any sense of empathy was quickly replaced by hatred. They were still lives, though.

When Barry and Sam made it to one of the checkpoints, they were surprised to find that their attire of rags was quite fitting for blending in with everything else. The checkpoint seemed to stick out like a sore thumb compared to the rest of the town. Where dust, rust, and disease covered the rest of the ugly brown-skied town, the checkpoint was pristine. It was stationed at an intersection with one road leading out of the city.

At each of the 4 entrances into the checkpoint, there were 4 pillars of some advanced technology. They were coated in a white ceramic-looking material. At each entrance, two sets were present. Each set was comprised of two of the pillars facing each other, with some sort of semi-transparent blue forcefield emitted between them. With both sets, they took up the entirety of the entrance.

In front of the forcefields were basic defenses. Two short walls standing waist high with a grunt at each. There were also grunts in front of the two forcefields, one each. On the right side of the entrance, there was a small line of citizens moving into the checkpoint, and the occasional citizen exiting on the left side. When a citizen reached the forcefield to enter, they showed something to the grunt, who promptly used a device that looked strangely similar to a scanner at a store on whatever the citizen showed.

Barry and Sam were standing back at a building close to the checkpoint, observing from afar.

"What is that they're scanning?" Barry asked.

"I'm not sure. It looks like something on their right hand." Sam answered.

Barry chuckled. "Mark of the beast sounds pretty fitting right about now."

"Seems like it. How are we supposed to get through, then? Powers? I doubt they've left another way through. We could always go around the town."

"Well, first off, we can't use our powers. Look inside the checkpoint. See the thing with the red lights?" Barry pointed to a device standing in the center of the checkpoint, with bright red lights mounted on it.

"Yeah, what about it?"

"Cisco had an idea for a device that detected meta-human energy within a small radius. The radius was too small for practical use, but further development could provide a warning system when planted in areas likely to be hit by a meta. It was essentially an alarm system. By now, they've developed it to the point that it would sense even the slightest usage of powers."

"And my fire?"

"It's fire. They'll see it. Also, we don't have the time to spare going around the town. It's better to find a way through. We would also learn some stuff about them."

"I guess." Sam surrendered. "How will we get in?"

"I have an idea. First, store these." Barry took off his ring. Sam took it, removed his, and opened a small flame rune beside him, no larger than his hand. He reached in and put the rings inside the rune, then removed his hand and closed it.

"Now, give me a knife." Sam summoned a knife and handed it to Barry. He brought it to the back of his right hand and made a cut. Before Sam could protest, Barry cut his as well.

"What the hell?"

"Heal them, but only partially. Make it look like a still-healing wound."

"Alright..." Sam summoned a small blue flame at the tip of his left index finger and held it over his and Barry's wound for a few seconds.

"Now, follow my lead," Barry said.

Barry moved away from the building and began walking to the small line. Confused, Sam got up and moved with him.

"What are you doing?" Sam shout-whispered to Barry.

"Calm down, you'll know what to do."

Eventually, the two reached the line. There were only a few in front of them, and the line seemed to move rather quickly. Barry was trying to look a calm as possible, but Sam was visibly nervous.

Once the two reached the barrier, the grunt spoke.

"Hand." A monotone, yet deep voice came from the grunt. He was dressed in some kind of basic combat armor. His helmet was a sort of head-shaped sphere, all white with red eyeholes being the only break in the blank white. His hands were covered in gloves with what seemed to be built in knuckles. Definitely harder than brass and definitely made for punishment.

Barry raised his right hand to the grunt. The grunt attempted to scan it, but the scanner, as expected, gave no results. His head darted over to Barry.

"What is this?"

"We were attacked. They took our chips. I don't know why. My buddy here is in the same situation." The grunt looked to Sam.

"Uh... y-yeah." Sam managed to get out.

The grunt seemed to growl, before grabbing the two by the arms and tossing them into the checkpoint.

They passed through the barrier, causing it to become green for a moment. The commotion caused some of the enforcers to look their way. The enforcers were wearing a similar uniform to the grunts, but they had Riser's sigil on their chest plate, and they were missing a helmet.

One of the enforcers looked to the grunt. "What the hell are you doing?"

"These two don't have chips. According to them, they were attacked and had them stolen."

The enforcer rolled his eyes. He walked up to the pair.

"You idiots!" The enforcer punched Barry in the gut, causing him to double over. Another swift punch to the side of the head sent Barry to the ground. Sam watched with barely concealed anger. The enforcer looked to Sam and slammed into his jaw with the back of his armored fist. Sam fell to the ground as well.

Sam looked at Barry, gritting his teeth. A blue flame was creeping its way out of Sam's eyes. Barry saw this mouthed 'calm, let it happen'. Sam obeyed.

"Get the hell up. Now!" Barry and Sam obeyed. "I oughta beat the everlastin' outa you. First I get moved from America to this trash heap and now I'm havin ta deal with-"

"Dave, calm down. I'll deal with them." One of the other enforcers halted 'Dave's attempt to beat them senseless. The three all looked at the new enforcer. Dave huffed.

"Fine. Here." Dave pushed the duo into the new enforcer. He was an older man, at least in his late 30s. His eyes were much softer than those of Dave's.

"Come along you two." The enforcer picked up a metallic briefcase and motioned for them to follow. The three walked out of the checkpoint and into a nearby building.

The building must have been some kind of office for the forces. They walked through the cramped building and into a simple office.

The enforcer sat down at his sparsely decorated desk and set the case down on top of it facing him. He switched on his computer.

"Sit down." The enforcer pointed to two small leather chairs. Barry and Sam plopped down in them.

"Thanks for that out there. What's your name?" Barry asked.

"George. George Nelson. I run this checkpoint. So, what happened to your chips?" George replied.

"We were attacked. A few guys jumped us. Put us to the ground and cut them out. I guess they wanted to steal our identity." Barry 'explained.'

"That was stupid. And coming to a checkpoint without getting new ones was even stupider."

"Well, we're in a bit of a hurry. We wanted to meet up with a few friends in Berlin but had to go it on foot."

"Berlin, eh? With friends in such high places, why are you two walking around like this? Or going there on foot?"

"We haven't spoken to them in a long time, so we haven't exactly reaped the rewards from their success." This time, Sam cut in.

"Ah. I assume your travel passes were on your chips, then?"

"Yeah. Any chance you can replace them?" Barry asked.

"I can try." George opened the case and removed two small metal containers, along with a gun-shaped injector. He removed a scanner from the computer and scanned the first box. "Name please?" Directed at Sam.

"Max Adams," Sam said. George typed on the computer and scanned the other box.

"And your name?" Directed toward Barry

"John Fox." Once again, George typed on his computer.

"Alright. Now I'll scan your faces, see if I can find your files easily." George held out the scanner and flipped a switch on its side. One at a time, he scanned their faces and waited for them to load on the computer.

Sam and Barry saw George's facial expression morph from neutral to confused. His brow furrowed and he leaned in slightly to the monitor. It was no doubt to them that Riser made sure to add in their faces into the system to make sure they would be found if they tried something like this.

George looked back at the two in... amazement? It was no matter, as Sam wasted no time to react. He sprung to his feet, and in almost an instant, moved to intervene.

His eyes flared their familiar brilliant blue. Starting from his neck, thin lines of blue quickly crept their way along his skin, almost looking technological in nature. Once they reached his hand, it burst into a bright blue flame. Heat emanated from the flame-covered hand, sending the room rocketing up in temperature. His hand reached for the side of George's head.

"Wait wait WAIT!" George practically threw his chair to the side and backed up against the wall behind him. Sam hopped over the desk with ease.

"Sorry about this," Sam said as he readied to invade the mind of the enforcer. He jutted his hand out and slammed it into the side of the enforcer's head. His eyes burst into fire, just as Sam's. Within a few seconds, the guard was on the floor.

"Great. What now?" Barry asked, moving to the other side of the desk.

"Fix this. Riser gave us files."

"Great. Has a notice been sent to their command?"

"Doesn't look like. I doubt they would do that. Accidents do happen, and I doubt they would want a planetary crisis every time the IT guy forgets to update the servers."

"Let me try something." Barry moved the chair back over to the desk.

After some work with the files, he managed to make the system think that their faces matched up with nothing in the database.

"That should solve our problem. Now, what do we do about him?"

"We still need these chips, don't we? Sit back in the same chair." Barry obeyed. Sam grabbed George and plopped him in his chair. Sam then sat back in his chair. With a flare of his eyes, lines of blue crept over the floor, onto the chair, and eventually across the face of George. Sam held up his left hand, ready to snap. He turned to Barry.

"Look worried." He turned back to George and leaned forward in his seat. With a snap, George's eyes snapped open. The fire from the wake-up-call quickly went away, as did the blue magic across the floor and on the two.

George looked around, confused.

"George? George! Are you alright?" Sam started to act out concern. Barry thought he was quite convincing.

"Wha- uh... yeah. What happened?"

"I don't know." Barry started. "You had just finished scanning our faces when you blacked out for a few seconds."

"Oh. I don't know what happened." George turned to the computer screen. "Strange. Your faces show no match. Connection must be bugging out."

"What does that mean for us?" Barry asked.

"Unless you want to wait here and put more time between you and when you need to be in Berlin, I have to create new profiles for you two. When scanned at another checkpoint, it should come up with your real profile."

George began typing away at the keyboard, doing God knows what. Barry decided now was the time to get some information.

"So, uh... What's your deal? You seem much less pissy than the other enforcers out there." Barry said. George let out a laugh.

"Damn son, you got some balls on you talking like that! But, truth be told... let's just say I don't get my rocks off from beating on innocent civilians."

"Why'd you join? From what I've seen, most that join want power over others." Sam asked.

"I didn't join voluntarily. I used to live in America, but things changed a few years after the occupation. My wife grew sick and it was getting hard to support the family while also keeping her alive. I went to the state for help and they offered me a job. Work in the force and they would take care of my wife. I joined without hesitation. As long as she lived and the kids were taken care of, I would be happy. Now, they only let me see them on occasion. Even when I do it's just for a day or so at a time. And if I quit, then goodbye to treatments." George looked away from the computer while saying this, a solemn look cracking his authoritative demeanor.

George then proceeded to ask them each basic questions about themselves. Naturally, they lied and made up false backgrounds for 'Max Adams' and 'John Fox'. At the end of the questioning, George picked up the containers and placed them on the table. He pressed a button on the top of each. The containers beeped and opened up. The top of each rose with a quiet hum. Inside was a small device, about the size of a grain of rice. He grabbed the gun, flipped a switch, and loaded the first chip into it. He looked at Barry.

"Hand."

Barry put out his right hand. George grabbed hold of it and placed the tip of the gun at a 45-degree angle against the back of his hand. George pulled the trigger and the gun beeped as it quickly injected the chip into Barry's hand. Barry pulled his hand back and looked at the quickly disappearing wound.

George repeated the same process with Sam. After that, he quickly went over the basics of the chip model.

"Some good comes out of this encounter. Those are some of the latest and greatest chips. They pay for anything, online or real world. It has compatibility with pretty much every kind of tech out there. They also..."

George droned on for a good 5 minutes. At the end of his speech, he had them stand and follow him.

"I also added travel passes to Berlin. Free of charge. They will get you through any checkpoint much quicker than this one." The three arrived outside, being met with a few scowls, particularly from the one that shoved them to the ground.

"Thank you for being so helpful! We'll remember you when we get to Berlin." Barry said. He was genuine in his thanks. There was no reason to hold a grudge against this man.

"Thank you. Oh, by the way, I have one more thing for you." George said. He moved over to one of the corners of the checkpoint and grabbed another case, similar to the one with the chips. He opened it and grabbed two outfits from inside. They were all black in color. The outfits were made up of black jeans, black button-ups, and black jackets. He walked over to the two.

"It will be a while until you reach the next big city, so I'm giving you these. It's what we usually wear off duty, though we are far from being the only ones to wear things like this, so you won't have to worry. These are loaded with tech to make the trip as comfortable as possible. Plus, you won't stick out like a sore thumb when you get there, what with your rags and all."

Barry and Sam grabbed the clothing thanked the man once again. They took their leave, walking through the west gate and out of the city.

After they were a considerable distance away, they both changed into their new clothing, Barry speeding into it and Sam changing normally. They continued to chat as they made their way to Lublin.

"Was there anything off about that guy you noticed?" Barry asked.

"Other than him not being a sadist, no. Why, did you see something?"

"Not necessarily. I... look, when he saw our pictures on the computer and realized who we were, his reaction wasn't what I expected."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that he seemed... I don't know like he wasn't hostile to that. When he said 'wait,' to me, it didn't seem as if it were some kind plea for his life, but more like he was, I don't know, trying to reason with us?"

"People react to fear in different ways. It's not unreasonable to assume that he was trying to bargain for his life."

"I guess. I don't know, I just have a feeling. Did you search his mind?"

"No, I didn't want to take the time to do so."

"Alright. Let's just keep moving." Barry sighed as he continued his journey.

* * *

George watched the two walk off toward Lublin. He chuckled as he thought of their actions.

 _John Fox? Max Adams? Could they be any worse at making up names? Ah, well, it's not like that's what they were trained to do._

As he walked back to his post, Dave approached George.

"The hell was that? You tryin to get reprimanded? Why the hell were you so soft with em?"

"Dave, stand down. I am your ranking officer."

"Ranks don't mean jack when you treat these scum like they're royalty or some shit."

"You're testing my patience. Get back." George's face was set in stone.

"What are you gonna do if I don't, huh? Attack me? You know you're already on watch from the shady stuff you get up too. What would happen to that wife 'a your's if they strip away the meds, huh?"

"One last chance. Stand. Down."

Dave chuckled. "You know, you're lucky I'm tired." He turned back and began to walk away from George. "My shift is over. I'm headin out."

George said nothing. He looked around at the other enforcers to see them all staring at him.

"Well? Get back to work!" At that, the rest of the enforcers hopped back to their jobs.

George walked back into his office. He sat down at his desk and rested his head in his hands.

 _There's no doubt about it. It's them._

George brought up his gauntlet and tapped around a few times. He eventually entered in a phone number. It rang out a few times before the line connected.

"Hello?" A feminine voice filled George's ears.

"Commander, this is George Nelson, UC at Checkpoint 2976-F. I got some news to tell you. Big news.

"Oh? First, when will the black night cry?"

"When the silence of the void breaks."

"Good. Now, what is it you had to tell me?"

"Two people just came through the checkpoint, missing chips."

"And? What's so special about that?"

"I'm sending you something via my PCD. Stand by." George tapped around the device located on his left gauntlet. After a moment, the gauntlet dinged.

"It should be coming your way now."

"It's coming in. I'm putting it on my display. What is it?"

"Mam, it's them."

"Them? What do you..."

Silence fell upon the line.

" _Oh my God."_ The woman said in a voice little above a whisper.

"It's them, commander. They're back. They're headed to Berlin. I think we both know why."

"Yeah..." The woman sounded breathless. "Good work George. I'll follow up later."

"Of course, commander. Signing out." The line disconnected.

The woman leaned back in her seat. She stared at the faces before her. Mainly she stared at one of them.

"You're back... I knew you were alive."

The woman cried quietly in her office.

For the first time in a long time...

She felt hope.


	3. The Other Side of the Coin

**A/N:** **9wvUHRG**

 **9wvUHRG**

 **9wvUHRG**

 **9wvUHRG**

 **9wvUHRG**

 **DISCORD INVITE CODES TO MY SERVER! USE THIS TO YELL AT ME SO I DON'T WAIT HALF A YEAR TO UPDATE. Also, there is a link in my author bio.**

 **You know you have a problem updating when even JonTron uploads more than you do.**

 **I could give the long, complex answer excusing me from not doing this because life was crazy or something.**

 **Or I could tell you the truth and say that I just didn't want to write.**

 **I was tired of the constant pressure put on me by my schooling that I didn't also want the pressure of constantly keeping up with a story.**

 **Luckily, the year is coming to a close within the next two months. I have recently gotten some new motivation for the story in a character I introduce in this chapter. I began reading often again. Overall, I feel like I'm ready to write again.**

 **I am really sorry that it took this long. My word might just mean nothing to you at this point, but I hope it doesn't take this long again. Use the discord link to join my discord I made for this account to talk directly with me when you want, not just through fanfiction's slow system of direct messaging and reviewing. I really want to talk to all of you more on what I should do for my stories.**

 **This chapter has been beta-read by my dear friend GlisteningAorticArches. Thank him directly by JOINING THE DISCORD.**

 **alaskanbirdfriend - I feel I have done a disservice to you specifically, friend. Thank you for all of your reviews, they really do encourage me to do this. I look forward to you joining the discord hint hint...**

 **Brian Hughes - Thank you! I always love a good mystery.**

 **WhiteWing - A. Yes, Sorry. B. wHo kNoWs?!**

 **This chapter is quite short, and I apologize for that. However, I want to actually make sure you all know that**

 **I AM NOT ABANDONING THIS STORY**

 **Get it? Got it? Good.**

 **Read well, friends.**

 **9wvUHRG**

* * *

It was just a little over a days walk to get to Lublin. In their new clothing and travel passes, they made their way through checkpoints quickly, and sped or flew as fast as they could in areas without sensors. The day's walk quickly became a mere 13 hours.

With the skyline in the distance, Barry and Sam then found their way on a road leading to Lublin. It was much more impressive than everything they had seen on their journey, even having a few skyscrapers. As the two looked around, they noticed that many of the people around were from other countries. It was as if the pure essence of diversity had vomited all over the area surrounding Lublin, and most likely Lublin itself.

"I wonder why there seems to be such a diverse population here," Sam asked himself.

"Riser must be relocating people to wherever he sees fit." Barry guessed, looking over to Sam.

"Must be."

"Hey, what do you think the others are doing right now?" Barry asked.

"No idea. You knew them better than I did." Sam answered.

"True. It's just that I'm worried about them."

"You?! The great Wraith, worried about friends?! My good sir, have you changed!" Sam exclaimed sarcastically. Barry chuckled along.

"Indeed I have, old friend."

* * *

"Rise and shine, maggots! Get up!"

A loud siren blasted its call through the air, reaching the ears of the sleeping inmates. The sound bounced off of the marble-white walls, humming from the engine's quiet rumble. The block was lined with cells, each sealed shut with a blue forcefield, buzzing slightly.

As the sound reached the ears of one retired archer, the lone soul in the cell began to stir. He opened his eyes to find the same sight he had every other morning of the last 5 or so years. Blank white walls, only obstructed by a toilet, bed, and small metal desk with a few items he had earned during his time there.

Oliver rose to his feet with a grunt and blinked the sleep from his eyes. He looked around his cell until his eye caught a small mirror sitting on his desk. Starring back at him was a stranger to the man he was before everything. Before Riser. Before Barry's return, or his death. He had short, dark hair and a short beard of the same color. His eyes were heavy and dark. He was broken.

The dreams didn't help.

From what he had heard when talking with the rest of his block, they had all been having the same dream. As the dream started, the person in question was on their knees, chained to the floor of a platform far above the ground. They were in a circle made of everyone else from the old team they made when Riser launched his attack on Central City. They would look up to see a man in some kind of special officer's uniform standing in the center, speaking to a crowd. As the man finished, he pulled out a gun, aimed it at someone's head, and fired. There was a flash, followed by a loud bang, ending with a thud of a body hitting the floor. As soon as it hit, the dream ended.

Everyone knew what it was. Their execution was only a little over a week away. They all knew it was coming before it was even scheduled, but it still hurt. Even the most pessimistic had a little hope that they would one day be saved.

Oliver retrieved his change of clothes, which was a simple black jumpsuit, modeled after the traditional orange jumpsuit inmates in American prisons used to wear. It contrasted with the pure white walls of the orbiting prison. He changed quickly and stood in front of the forcefield.

"Line up!"

A harsh voice called out once again. The forcefield disappeared, allowing Oliver to step out. As he did, the other inmates on his block stepped with him. They were all friends of his, both ones from before the Siege, and afterward. From his left, someone called out.

"One!" Winn said.

"Two!" That was Alex, Kara's sister.

"Three..." Harry muttered, just loud enough for the guard.

"Four." Oliver himself spoke.

"Five!" Felicity, his still wife, yelled.

"Six!" Diggle finished.

"Alright, breakfast is in 10. Be ready." The guard walked away, leaving the block. As he did, silence fell over the small block dedicated to them. It was styled after a traditional American prison, with cells leading out into a small common area. Ever since the news of their execution had come, all hope of rescue fell away. Even the rumors of Barry and Sam somehow coming back to life weren't able to keep them hopeful.

The usual games they would play with cards they bought with money from small jobs around the ship were absent this morning. Actually, they had been gone for a few days now. Everyone seemed ready to accept death.

Everyone but Oliver.

As Oliver sat down to wait for the mess hall to open up, Felicity pulled up a chair beside him and sat down. She grabbed hold of his hand and rested her head on his shoulder. He let out a small smile as he remembered the old days of the Green Arrow.

"What are you thinking about?" Oliver heard a quiet voice from beside him. He turned his head to look at her.

"Everything. I'm still holding out hope for some kind of escape, or rescue." Felicity let out a small chuckle.

"Oliver Queen, always the optimist." Oliver smiled.

"Seriously though. Look around you. Everyone is sulking as if they want to die. Even if there's no way, we might as well die with a fight."

"I agree. The issue will be convincing them of that." Felicity answered, sitting up.

"Where do you think we should start?" Oliver asked, looking to his dear wife for advice.

"Easy. Diggle. We get him, he can hype up the rest."

"I see; give me a moment," Oliver said, rising from his chair and walking over to the wall Diggle was leaning against, flipping a coin in the air. Oliver leaned against the wall beside him.

"Morning Dig. How you holding up?" Diggle chuckled.

"How do you think? None of us are particularly glad about our situation."

"Yeah... I was thinking about that-"

"Don't Oliver. I know what you want to do. Don't. Everyone here is scared. Just let them live out their last days in peace."

Oliver was taken aback. He didn't expect this from Diggle.

"Peace? You call this peace? This isn't peace, this is just slavery. Do you want to just lay down and die, and let the person who has enslaved the world just go free without a fight?"

"Maybe we just want to die painlessly," Diggle said. Oliver looked at him bewildered.

"Seriously? Look, John, if we do nothing, we die. And that's it. But, if we do _something_ , hell, anything... we might just live. And if we don't, then we went out fighting. Isn't that better than lying down and letting Riser win?"

At this point, the argument had gotten to the point where everyone in the room was listening. Oliver and Diggle didn't notice.

"You think I want him to win? I want nothing more than for Riser to suffer. But if retaliation means the suffering of the people I care about, then I won't do it!"

"What the hell has happened to you John?! What happened to the man who would do anything to save a city, save his wife and kid, save his friends? What happened to that brave man I once knew?"

"Riser happened!" John backed away from the wall and tossed the coin aside. He pointed a finger at Oliver. "Riser stole everything from me, from all of us!"

Oliver looked at John's angered expression and stepped closer. Now just over a foot away, Oliver responded.

"Then help me steal it back. Let's at least die as who we are. Not the quiet slaves Riser wants us to be."

Diggle softened. He dropped his hand and looked to the side. He chuckled.

"You always knew how to persuade." Dig looked Oliver in the face. "I'm in."

"As am I," Harry spoke up. Oliver and John looked out and noticed everyone watching them.

"Seconded," Winn said.

"Ehh, why not. Some fun before our execution." Alex said last.

A feeling of hope finally settled onto the shoulders of the people in that lonely cell block. That hope was all they needed to get something done.

A buzzer sounded as they finished speaking, signaling the opening of the mess hall.

"Let's eat!" Winn exclaimed, the group leaving much happier than they would have if it weren't for Oliver.

* * *

A siren blasted through the air around Cisco's sleeping body, waking him up. Groggy, he sat up groaning and rubbing his eyes. Once they were clear, he looked around the room he called home. It was larger than the usual inmate's room but just as sparse. It was lined with blue walls that hummed as they output low-levels of radiation for the purpose of keeping him from using his powers. One wall had a door leading out to a large hallway. It was large and made out of some strong metal, too strong for most tools to break through. On the center of the door was a panel with two glowing orbs on it. They emitted a blue glow.

Beside the door, and hanging on the wall, was a pair of gloves. They were black gloves, with metallic components on the back of the hand and the palm, creating circles. They were also glowing blue.

Because a good portion of the guards were metas as well, they couldn't use anti-meta tech outside the cells. So, to exit a cell as an inmate, you have to both have the authorization to leave and have the anti-meta tech assigned to you on. As powers varied, so did the thing you had to wear. For Cisco, he was given gloves that shut down his powers. He could still get vibes, but they were too unintelligible to understand.

He got up from the chair and walked over to the door where a clean uniform was laying for him to wear. It was identical to the black jumpsuit other inmates wore, except for a large white symbol on the chest and back symbolizing that they were more than a normal human.

Cisco quickly changed into his clean uniform, disposing of the dirty one into the receptacle on the wall. He walked over to the gloves and put them on. They secured tightly on his hand, locking on to ensure they couldn't be taken off. The blue lights brightened for a moment, registering the user and activating the ID components. He placed his hands on the two orbs on the metal door, allowing it to confirm his identity and that he was "restrained," and released the hydraulic lock, allowing Cisco to push the door open.

As he stepped out, he looked around the block he was in. Unlike most other cell blocks, this one was in the formation of a circle, with the cells themselves acting as the outer edge. A narrow passageway at one end of the circle allowed passage in and out of the block. This passage was directly across from Cisco.

Cisco was the first out of his cell. He sat down at one of the tables scattered around the circle for use by the inmates. He rested his head on his hands, elbows resting on the table, and closed his eyes. As advanced as the tech was, even they couldn't stop inter-universal premonitions, i.e. vibes. They could muffle them though. As Cisco initiated his ability, now trained to the point where he could activate a vibe with ease, he encountered a familiar phenomenon. Instead of seeing a scene play out, he just got what could be considered an inter-dimensional quantum tv static. He could hear and see things, but the issue was that he could hear and see _everything,_ much like Professor Xavier in X-Men. He was getting better at sorting through it all but was far from finding anything actually useful, or intelligible.

The most intelligible thing he could see was what he assumed to be his execution. Him and his friends sitting in a circle, ending with one of them getting shot.

He got this vibe again, leaving Cisco frustrated. He kept focusing, hoping he could-

"Your nose is bleeding."

Cisco quickly snapped out of his trance, startled. He looked around frantically until his eyes caught the woman sitting beside him. Caitlin Snow was turned toward him, leaning against the table.

At this point, everyone was out of their cells and mingling about with the others. It was only 6 of them, so the circle was quite empty.

Cisco reached up to his nose with his index and middle finger and saw that they were bloody when he pulled them away.

Cisco looked to Caitlin, about to respond, when she held up a tissue with the hand she wasn't using to lean on.

Cisco stared for a second, before chuckling and grabbing the tissue, using it to clean his nose and face.

"Caitlin Snow, always saving the day." Cisco laughed as he turned his body to better face Caitlin.

"If only that were the case," Caitlin said, smiling softly.

"Hey, cheer up! Maybe we'll find a way out of it? Or maybe I'll see better in my vibe and find out it ends better than we thought?" Cisco looked at her hopeful. Caitlin just smiled and shook her head.

"I wish, but... I don't think there's any getting out of this one. Riser's got us locked down tight, and even a resistance wouldn't be strong enough to storm Berlin."

"Doesn't mean we can't try."

"Very true. I doubt anyone here will stop you from one last getaway plan. We'll die if we don't, so..." Caitlin reasoned.

"We'll need more than just ourselves though," Kara spoke up. She sat down across from the two. "Without our powers, our best hope is numbers."

"We could try getting help from the rest of our friends," Wally offered. He sat beside Kara. J'onn and Jesse followed suit, sitting down.

"The mess hall opens up in a few minutes, we could talk to them then," J'onn said.

"What should we do though?" Jesse asked.

"We would need our powers back if we stand a chance of winning this. Best if we just get every inmate out at the same time, metas and all. Slip out in the chaos, or even tear this place down while we're at it." Cisco said.

"Think they'll need convincing?" Caitlin asked.

"Hopefully they're already planning the same thing," Cisco answered.

At that, the siren signaling breakfast time sounded, sending the group to the door to leave.

* * *

Both parties entered the mess hall at the same time. It was slowly filling with the resident prisoners. None of them looked happy.

The two parties met at their usual table after getting their food. It had about 5 chairs on either side, with one on each head of the table. Oliver and Harry took the heads, with the rest falling into their usual seats.

It was silent for a moment.

"Guys, listen up," Oliver said. Everyone looked at him. "Those in my block already know this, but I've been thinking. We die in just over a week. The least we can do is try to fight back."

Those from the meta block chuckled.

"We had the same idea. Go down fighting." Caitlin said. Oliver looked surprised at this.

"That's great. I guess it's settled. We fight back." Oliver said, happily digging into his meal.

"This is great and all," Harry swallowed his food. "But how do we plan on getting out? This place is heavily guarded."

"Well," Kara began, "we would need our powers back. But even with those, all 12 of us would be too much to sneak out, and not enough for us to brute force our way out."

"What if we free everyone? Open all the cells to the prison. In so much commotion, we should be able to find a way out." Cisco offered.

"There's no way we get around the facility without powers. No offense, but we need more than just science and fighting techniques to get out." Jesse said.

"So our first priority is getting you six the ability to use your powers. Any ideas on that?" Oliver said.

"Well, we've actually become pretty good friends with our guards. Apparently, they want more than mindless zombies as our personal guards, thus leaving them open to emotion. We could use that."

"Emotionally manipulate the guards. Perfect." Harry chuckled. "Which one of you is closest to one of the guards?"

"Actually," Kara said, smirking, "I'm pretty sure one has developed a bit of a crush on me. I could use that."

Diggle smiled. "Feign injury. If he really does see you in that light, he won't suspect a thing. He'll be so wrapped up in being your knight in shining armor to realize the trap."

"I like it. We can set up the details when we return to the cell block." Kara responded.

Oliver and Cisco smiled. Hope was returning.

"So, assuming that we get you six out of your block with access to your power, what then? Where do we go?" Felicity asked.

" _I may be able to help with that_." A voice came from behind Oliver, one he didn't recognize.

Everyone turned to look at the voice. It came from a 20 something man with a clean-shaven face and ever-so-slightly tanned skin. His hair was in a simple trim, and his eyes were bright green. He looked like the definition of formality. Save for the prison jumpsuit, of course.

"Who are you?" Oliver asked. "How much did you hear?"

"Do not fret, Green Arrow, I mean no harm to you or your plan. In fact, I intend to help it." The man said calmly.

"That band around your head. You're a telepath?" Caitlin said, indicating a band of similar tech to the gloves that she and Cisco wore.

The meta's restriction tech varied based on the inmate's abilities. For instance, Kara wears two bracelets constantly humming with red sunlight. Wally and Jesse wore Iron Man looking devices on their chest to absorb their speed force energy. The band surrounding the stranger's head indicated a mental ability.

"Close, but that doesn't matter now. What matters now is how to get out of this joint. Oh, by the way...

My name is Saul.

Saul Stout.

It's a pleasure to meet you."

* * *

 **A/N: uwu whos Saul?**

 **Sorry again for the wait.**

 **9wvUHRG**

 **Go there now friends. :D**


	4. Breaking Hope

**A/N: Yeah so just don't expect updates regularly** **at this point. I will do them, but obviously I am incapable of doing them often. I did leave yall a treat at the end, so yeah.**

 **Have fun.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own CW, DC, or any of their stories or characters. I do own the Ressurection story as well as Samandriel.**

 **K have fun.**

* * *

Lublin looked different than what Barry would have expected. Instead of the traditional European architecture, there were high rises and skyscrapers abundantly spaced around the city. The new buildings clashed with the few remnants of the old buildings, now decrepit because of the lack of care for them anymore.

People were acting much different than in Vyshniv. While there were still the more-than-comfortably frequent sights of men, women, and children dying of starvation, huddled in alleyways and darkened corners, the majority of the population seemed, well, pleasant. They looked content with their living situations, despite the _1984_ levels of surveillance. Though, that could just be them avoiding a FaceCrime™.

There was practically nowhere one could look without seeing one of Riser's grunts. The Civil Enforcers were typically seen around more secure locations, like buildings or large public areas. Regardless, they were extremely plentiful, making the duo grateful that the grunts and Enforcers were not well acquainted with their faces.

"Where do we go from here?" Barry asked Sam.

"Well, the nearest transport station is on the other side of the city. And with the checkpoints, it'll take us a while to get there." Sam explained.

"Can't use our powers. They're heavily monitoring for those. And we need that transport to get to Berlin in time. I guess we'll go the long route."

"Alright. Let's go."

* * *

"My name is Saul. Saul Stout. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Cisco was... confused. Riser set up a reward system for reports on attempted breakouts to prevent large coalitions between prisoners from forming. If a prisoner gives information on a group attempting to break out, that prisoner may be rewarded if the intel pans out. And, considering the massive undertaking it would be to fight against Riser's chosen guards, most choose the reward over possible freedom.

Someone like this, who seemed to be well put together, would be the type of person to cash in on such rewards. And yet, he was offering to _help_.

Plus, there was something else bothering Cisco about this guy, but he couldn't figure out what.

"You're welcome to sit down and stop drawing attention," Oliver spoke through a feigned grin.

"Thank you." Saul grabbed a folding chair from another table and placed it directly beside Oliver. The Green Arrow moved his chair over to make room.

"So, what do you want?" Harry asked the guest.

"Same thing as all of you. Freedom. My execution date may not be approaching, but yours is, and it seems fitting to escape with the infamous remnants of the 'Justice League'." Saul said. He leaned forward in his chair, smirking. "Plus, I always like a little chaos."

"How do we know you won't sell us out?" Cisco asked, nervous about the reward system.

"Because I have already associated myself with all of you. Even if I rat, I'll get the rope, same as the rest of you."

"Fine. Say you're trustworthy. Why do we need you?" Harry asked.

"Well, you seem to have a basic plan to escape your cells. But how do you proceed? Where do you go? What do you do? How do you free your non-meta friends? These are questions that need answering. Luckily, I have the answers."

"And how is that?" Diggle asked, skeptical.

"I know things. I'm not on death row, so I'm not watched as intently as the rest of you. I'm good at moving around." Saul sat back in his chair. "Look, my methods are not important. What _is_ important is the information I have. That information is how you get out."

Everyone looked at each other. Silently, they began to agree on siding with Saul. After about a minute had passed, Oliver spoke up.

"Alright, Saul Goodman. You're in."

"Good. Now, let's get down to business."

* * *

It was afternoon rest. Everyone was back in their cells. Kara sat on her bed, surrounded by the restricting red sunlight. She breathed in. She breathed out.

In.

Out.

In.

Out.

Kara closed her eyes and continued her breathing. Mentally steeling herself, she opened her eyes and stood. Kara walked over to the center of her cell. She looked at the clock on the wall.

3:59:50

She waited.

3:59:55

Just a bit longer...

3:59:58

Two.

One.

4:00:00

Kara let out a scream. She clutched her stomach, falling to her knees and subsequently the floor. She waited.

4:00:17

Her door opened to a panicked guard.

"Shit! Let me get you to the infirmary!" The guard rushed over to the wall mount with her red sun bracelets. He left the door open so he could get her out faster.

That was his fatal mistake.

...

Typically, one couldn't leave their cell during rests. A guard was stationed at the entrance of the block to prevent this.

Their guard was a bit... _preoccupied_.

Jonn put on his chest piece that restricted his powers and left his cell. Kara's door was already open. He rushed over to the open door and saw a guard hunched over Kara's "pained" body. He walked up behind the guard and slipped his arm around the guard's throat. Despite the lack of his powers, Jonn was still pretty strong. The guard lost access to his blood and went limp. The door was still open.

Kara walked out of her cell, and for the first time in 5 years, felt a smidge of her power return. She walked over to one of the windows and fully took in the sun.

As the power rushed through her, Kara felt alive once again. Before, everything felt muted. But now... she felt everything.

She turned around, beaming. Running over to Jonn, she tore the chest piece apart. Jonn instinctively smiled.

"I missed this," Jonn said. He began morphing into different forms rapidly, eventually stopping on his trademark.

The others left their cells, and one by one Kara freed them from their restraints. Wally and Jesse began running around the room, making skid marks on the ceiling. Caitlin let ice flow off of her hands, being careful not to overdo it.

When Cisco was freed, he dropped to his knees in pain. A thousand thoughts slammed into him, no longer the muddled mess it was before, but it was still far too much to sift through at the time. He felt the vibrations of the multiverse boom through him like shockwaves.

The episode only lasted a minute. When he broke free, he found that the others were staring at him, concerned, with Caitlin kneeling in front of him.

"Are you alright? What happened?" Caitlin asked.

"Nothing, I'm fine." Cisco stood and dusted his knees off. "It's just... a lot."

"I understand," Caitlin said. She looked back at Kara. "What time is it?"

Kara began moving to her cell to look, but stopped and smiled. She looked through the wall.

"It's 4:15. Time to move." Kara said.

"Alright. Let's go!" Wally exclaimed.

* * *

Wally and Jesse raced through the facility. Using their FlashTime™ they were able to move around any guards easily. Granted, they couldn't hang around as they weren't Flash fast, but they were certainly fast enough to get the job done.

Within a few minutes (from their perspective) they two had nearly reached their destination. All that was left between them and their goal was a humming vaporization field and two guards who operated in FlashTime™. Their speed wouldn't help them here.

They hid around the corner to avoid the gaze of the enemy speedsters.

"What time is it?" Wally asked.

"Hold on." Jesse disappeared and reappeared. "It's 4:16."

"Alright. One more minute."

The two waited anxiously. After one long minute, they heard the guards around the corner begin to talk.

"Sounds like someone is on their way here. They're coming from the east wing." One guard said.

"Who?" The other responded.

"Someone ratted on some people trying to escape. I'll go try to cut them off. You stay here."

"Got it."

One guard left his post and turned right, in the direction opposite the two speedsters. Wally nodded to Jesse, as she moved forward.

"Help! Please, I think something ruptured!" Jesse cried once the other guard was out of earshot. The one still at his post raised his gun.

"What the hell are you doing here! Return to your cell!" The guard shouted.

"Please, I need help!" As Jesse continued to cry out, Wally raced forward. Now that the guard was pulled out of FlashTime™ he could speed toward him easily.

Wally ripped the gun from the guard's hands, setting it to the side before slamming his fist into the back of the guard's head. He crumpled.

Jesse chuckled. "That worked better than expected. Looks like Saul's pretty bright." Wally returned the laugh.

"Yup. Help me search him." Wally and Jesse searched the pockets of the downed guard.

"Found it!" Jesse pulled a shiny keycard out of one of the pouches on the guard.

"Good. Shut off the gate." Wally said, standing. Jesse placed the keycard against a reader on the side of the gate, shutting off the vaporization field.

"Let's go," Jesse said, moving forward.

The two moved past the disabled gate with the downed guard in tow. They continued down the hallway, stopping at a door near the end. Each speedster took a side of the doorway.

"Ready?" Wally asked with a smile.

"As always!" Jesse replied.

Setting the guard down, the duo phased through the wall into the room. The room overlooked the main courtyard, with screens showing block after block, except for one that just so happened to have been shut down temporarily due to maintenance. The security control center was populated by 8 armed guards. This, however, meant nothing for a couple of speedsters.

Within a few seconds, the guards were all unconscious and being piled into a corner. Wally and Jesse sped over to the main control panel.

"Alright. Which one is it?" Wally asked.

"Saul said it would be the third panel, 5th row," Jesse said as she began tracing for the location. "Here." Jesse pointed to the right row.

"Okay. What time is it?

"4:19," Jesse responded.

"Get on the camera control," Wally ordered. Jesse nodded and found the master video surveillance panel. "Wait for it..."

As soon as the number on the clock hit 4:20, Jesse shut down video recording and any other security rooms that could see cameras. Now, only they had eyes in the compound.

"1. 2. 3. 4. 5..." Wally began counting.

"6."

"7."

"8."

"9."

"10!"

* * *

Barry and Sam walked as fast as they could without drawing attention. Thanks to the clothes given to them by the checkpoint guard, they managed to blend in quite well.

The city looked like the definition of a populated city in a tyrannical rule. The buildings are mostly futuristic works of wonder while collapsing buildings are seen occasionally, impoverished inhabitants hiding from the civil enforcers that were nearly everywhere outside. Screens showing off "News" giving off the idea that there was some notion of a free press. Each one streaming headlines showing off various resistance groups being obliterated by the powerful forces of Riser, or pictures of how happy everyone around you is, just to make it feel like the issues you go through are just yourself and not the fault of The Rising Star™. Orwell is truely spinning in his grave.

However, they paid no mind to this. Their goal was far too time-sensitive to ponder the implications of endless war and restricted press. Their current objective was to make it to the intra-district tram system at the other edge of Lublin. At their speed, they could make it there by the end of the day. Typically, it would only take a couple of hours, but the checkpoints scattering the city would considerably slow up their arrival time. Luckily, this was countered by the extremely short time to make it to Berlin on Tram, only being about 8 hours.

That would land them in Berlin with about a week to spare, which was much longer than they had anticipated when they started.

Knowing this, they walked even faster at the thought of finally having some leeway.

Eventually, they reached the Tram Complex. A large building with railways jetting in from seeming all directions. Barry and Sam both entered the building, passed through the extra security with ease, and sat waiting for a train to Berlin. They weren't the only ones itching to get to Berlin, as the government had been hyping up the execution of the rest of the team for some time now.

It took about an hour, but eventually, the train to Berlin arrived with enough space for the two. They eagerly got on and sat next to the doors.

The train was beautiful compared to the city outside. It looked like a usual subway car, but clean and slightly futuristic. After all, they were going to the capital, so the trains going to and from there would probably look the best.

They were in one of the common cars, made just to hold seats for people. The car behind and ahead had bathrooms and rooms for government or military officials.

Barry and Sam had no such status, and as such were confined to the common car save for the few times they could use the bathroom.

"What do you think is going on up there?" Sam asked.

"I don't know. Staying safe, I hope." Barry answered, turning and smiling at his friend.

"You know what I'm worried about?"

"What?" Barry asked.

"Cisco. And Caitlin."

"What about them?"

"Well..." Sam sighed. "They were the two people who gave Riser the ability to rise to power. They single-handedly removed the thing standing between the people of the world and total domination by Riser. The guilt must be killing them. And even if they've gotten over it, what will seeing us alive do? Make them hate themselves all over again?" Sam tried to keep his voice low, despite his rising concern.

Barry sighed. He didn't answer for a few seconds. "They've had 5 years of emotional support with their friends. Hopefully, at least. If so, then I trust in my team to help them through it. If not, then we will do everything we can to help them get over their self-hate. I can see your cause for concern in them seeing us again. It will be hard." Barry paused, looking away. "Caitlin and Cisco are the two strongest people I know. Caitlin has gone through endless heartbreak, and Cisco has been dealing with identity problems for some time now." Barry looked back. "But they have always pushed through.

Cisco told me about a time from the 2 years I was still dead when Caitlin lost herself completely to Killer Frost, after a long time of resisting it. But this time, Caitlin was strong. At least, compared to when Frost first showed up. In much less time, Caitlin fought her way back to the front of her mind and pushed Frost back down. All of that anger, heartbreak, and loneliness that she went through gave her strength. Caitlin's only sin was trying to save her friend from giving in to his desire to kill. The same goes for Cisco. And I know that no matter what happens when we crash that execution, they will beat it. Especially with us at their side."

Sam sat back and let what Barry said seep into his mind.

Maybe things would be alright after all...

* * *

The cell doors opened right on time. Oliver rose from his bed and walked out of his cell. He looked left and right and saw the rest of his block doing the same. They all quietly moved out of the block.

Just as planned, no guards were in sight. The group quickly moved through the hallways, until they reached their destination.

"You're here! Thank Rao!" Kara exclaimed. They had reached the meetup point for the group.

Before Oliver could even respond, alarms went off around the station. A second later, two speedsters popped into existence in front of them.

"It's done. Every cell is open. Saul said he would handle interference, right?" Wally said.

"Yeah. We should be good to move now." Oliver said. He began to move, the whole group close behind.

"I really wish there was a way to disable the emergency meta dampeners. Just walking to the bay is making me anxious." Jesse said.

"Hopefully Saul found a way around the block for himself. Something to dampen the dampeners." Harry said.

The group continued to walk through the chaos, only encountering the occasional guard. The rest were too busy dealing with chaos in the blocks, which the team was far from. However, not all good things could last forever.

About 200 feet from the bay entrance, groups of guards flanked them from all sides. Guns pointed square at their heads, filled with kryptonite bullets.

"Freeze! Don't move!" One guard said.

"Well shit." Harry deadpanned.

"Dammit, where the hell is Saul?" Oliver cursed.

"Tower, this is TK-284. PID on the omegas, how should we proceed?" A guard spoke into his radio.

"Affirmative." The guard responded to whatever came from the other side.

"What do we do?!" Wally yelled. The guard holstered his weapon and grabbed another from his back. A large, black contraption was held in his hands, with which he aimed at the group.

"SAUL!" Cisco shouted. He closed his eyes.

He expected to be hit by whatever was in that thing. All he heard was a loud thud. He opened his eyes.

The guard had dropped the contraption. He was floating in the air, hands frantically clutching at his chest. He was screaming.

A sickening tear rung out from the guard's body as he was torn in two, vertically. The two halves slammed into the rest of the guards on his sides.

The other guards holding up the team turned to fire in the direction of the massacre. The bullets stopped right in front of a figure.

Saul approached, hand raised, palm out, holding back the bullets.

"Sorry, it took so long. Complications arose." Saul said. The bullets dropped to the ground. "Get behind me."

The guards opened fire as the team dashed behind Saul, but the bullets went nowhere. Soon they were out.

Saul began killing the guards, one by one. Ripping, tearing, shredding guards. All with a few simple hand movements. Soon, one guard remained. Saul lifted him into the air. He lifted both of his arms, slowly closing his hands. The guard screamed in pain, his internal organs shredding, his bones turning to dust. As Saul's hands fully closed, forming fists, the guard went limp, blood leaking out of his helmet. The guard hit the ground with a splat.

Saul turned and saw slightly horrified faces. "Yeah, I get it, it's brutal, but they aren't really alive, so it doesn't really matter. Now, are we going to move?"

Saul ran around them toward the doors. The team followed, after breaking out of their shock.

They ran into the hangar, sprinting toward an escape pod. From all exits, guards began to flood the hangar. Quickly, Saul reached the escape pod. A jerk of his hand opened the pod doors. As he turned from inside the pod, he saw the flood of soldiers. His eyes widened. After a quick judgment...

He shut the doors. Right as the team was about to reach it.

"Sorry, but you've got too much heat. Thanks for getting me out though!"

"Saul, open this damn door NOW!" Oliver yelled. The rest of the team held similar gripes with Saul's plan. However, it was too late. The guards closed in on them, and Saul hit the eject button.

* * *

"Huh... What's up..?" Sam mumbled out.

"Look," Barry said, pointing with wide eyes to the screen above them.

 _"...after a failed escape attempt today, the Traitors who the Rising Star defeated 5 years ago will have their executions moved up. At the time of this broadcast, the execution we have all been eagerly awaiting will happen in 30 minutes. Apologies to those who couldn't make it to Berlin-"_

"Oh, you've got to be fu-"

"Quiet! Do you want to be arrested?!" Barry shushed Sam.

"What the hell do we do? We're still 4 hours away from the city!" Sam harshly whispered.

"We'll have to use my speed at the right time. Let's take the time to plan."

* * *

They got off of the station, just not in the way that they wanted.

Caitlin was dragged out with the rest of her friends to the stage in the center of Berlin. A massive building with a circle outcropping made for speeches or executions. Thousands, nay, _millions_ , were hundreds of feet below and miles out from them, all watching the execution.

They were all put in a circle on the perimeter of the outcropping. Chains held them to the ground, on their knees, all facing in. As the last of the team was forced to kneel, the crowd erupted in deafening cheers. A man dressed in a general uniform walked out to be in the center of the circle. He spoke.

"Berlin! Europe! Earth! The entire world watches on this day to see the death of the last of the old age! The Traitors tried to escape, but their efforts were nothing compared to the power of Overlord-Supreme Rising Star!" More cheers.

"With this bullet, we begin the end of the past. First... The Kryptonian!"

The man unholstered a pistol at his side. He grabbed a single kryptonite bullet from a pouch and loaded it into the magazine. The officer slammed the magazine into the pistol, followed by a racking of the slide. He placed the gun against Kara's head.

Caitlin couldn't watch. Her mind flashed back to when she sided with Riser. When she betrayed her friends. Kara was about to die, because of her and Cisco. No, her. She convinced Cisco to side with her. He wanted to believe Barry until she swayed him. Guilt bubbled up inside her. She shut her eyes.

All she wanted was hope. Hope that the world could be saved from Riser. Hope that she could be free from her guilt. But there was none left. All of her hope had died. And now, Riser reigned supreme.

Hope lost.

...

 _ **BANG!**_

A deafening boom shocked Caitlin to her core. Tears were brought to her eyes, knowing that when she opened them, Kara would be dead.

 _Thump._

A body hit the ground. Kara was dead.

...

...

...

...Why was the gunshot still ringing out?

Caitlin opened her eyes slowly, fearing what she would see. First, she saw Kara. She was...

 _Alive?_

Caitlin looked to the center of the circle. The officer was limp on the ground, gun nowhere to be seen-

Red boots caught her eye. Gold trim lined the sides.

Her eyes trailed up slowly.

A red torso. Gold trim. _White symbol. Yellow bolt._ _**Hope.**_

Her eyes found the head. Standing in the center of the outcropping.

The Crimson Comet.

The Scarlet Speedster.

Barry Allen.

The Flash.


End file.
